ELECTROMAGNETIC

SENSORS - LVDT
DR. N. RAMESH BABU

MANUFACTURING ENGINEERING SECTION

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING
INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY - MADRAS
 ELECTRO-MAGNETIC TRANSDUCERS

• Principle of electromagnetic induction

• Types of electro-magnetic sensors

• Differential transformers
• Linear variable differential transformer
• Rotational differential transformer
• E transformer

• Resolvers

• Synchros

• Inductosyn
• Linear inductosyn
• Rotary inductosyn
Electro-magnetic Transducers

Principle of induction
 Differential Transformer
Applications: NULL POSITION SENSORS (Machine Datum)
FORM DEVIATION MEASUREMENTS
Differential Transformer
E Transformer
Rotary Differential Transformer
 Core motion detection
Static or slowly moving core

• Output of LVDT – Sine wave – Its amplitude is

proportional to core motion

• Output applied to AC voltmeter gives the same reading

for displacements equal on either side of the null (AC
meter is not sensitive to 180o phase change at null)

Rapid core motion

• AC meter cannot follow rapid core motion – oscilloscope/

oscillograph used as read out unit – records the motion
as an amplitude modulated sine wave
 Rapid core motion detection

LVDT Excitation
3 to 15 V rms
60 to 20,000Hz

How to get an output voltage similar to the mechanical motion being measured?

Displacement of Core

Few Hz to 1000 Hz
Scheme for rapid core motion detection
 Scheme for rapid core motion detection

In upper diode bridge

f is +ve, e is –ve efgcdhe – current path

f is –ve, e is +ve ehcdgfe – current path

Similar situation exists in lower diode bridge
 Scheme for rapid core motion detection

Design of filter is eased by

making LVDT excitation
frequency much higher
than core displacement
frequency (10:1 is desired)

f is +ve, e is –ve
efgcdhe – current path
f is –ve, e is +ve
ehcdgfe – current path
Similar situation exists
3 to 15 V rms in lower diode bridge

60 to 20,000Hz
 Scheme for rapid core motion detection

Static or slowly varying core displacements

• Voltage (eo) is applied directly to DC voltmeter – It acts as

an electromechanical low pass filter
• Motion of core on both sides of null is measured by a
meter with zero at the center of the scale

Rapid core motion measurement

• Connect eo to the input of a low pass filter – to pass the

frequencies related to core motion and to reject all the
frequencies produced by modulation process